Husnain Tansar
Tell us about yourself:
I am Husnain Tansar, a stormwater and flood researcher. I completed my undergraduate degree in Agricultural Engineering at the University of Agriculture, Pakistan, where I first developed my interest in hydrology and hydraulics. I later earned my master’s degree in water engineering and management from the Asian Institute of Technology in Thailand. During that time, I worked as a research intern at the Danish Hydraulic Institute (DHI) in Denmark, an experience that deepened my interest in urban drainage system modeling. After working for two years in as a water resources engineering in Panya Consultant Bangkok, Thailand, I began my Ph.D. in Civil and Environmental Engineering, specializing in stormwater control and management, in Hong Kong. Currently, I am a Postdoctoral Scholar at Florida State University and working on compound flooding research project. My academic and professional journey across different countries has shaped my research perspective and given me the opportunity to experience diverse cultures and learn from people with different backgrounds.
What is your research about?
During my postdoctoral research, I am focusing on compound flood modeling under climate change impacts along the American Gulf Coast. My work aims to improve understanding of how combined and cascading flood drivers, including tropical rainfall, high river discharge, storm surge, and wind fields, interact to shape compound flooding and its impacts on critical infrastructure. My current research also focuses on wind-driven hydrodynamic variations in bays and sub-embayments, particularly how coastal water levels and circulations respond to wind forcing and how these effects propagate into upstream rivers. In addition, another major area of my research is stormwater control and management through green and grey infrastructure applications. I apply optimization and decision-making approaches along with physics-based models and data-driven approaches to develop innovative and sustainable solutions for reducing urban flooding, minimizing societal impacts, and improving water quality. I am excited about improving flood prediction by combining physics-based modeling and data-driven approaches with high-quality topographic and meteorological datasets at high spatial and temporal resolutions. Through this work, I aim to translate advanced flood modeling into a better understanding of flood processes and more practical decision-making for flood risk management.
What excites you about your research?
I am passionate about exploring fluvial, pluvial, and coastal flood processes, including how these hazards affect communities and infrastructure. I am especially interested in improving existing methods and developing innovative, practical, and sustainable flood-prevention solutions that can contribute to reducing future flood impacts. I truly enjoy contributing to research that benefits society, either directly or indirectly, by helping communities better prepare for and reduce flood hazards. I believe that accurate precipitation forecasting, reliable flood modeling, informed decision-making, and strong community engagement are all essential for effective flood risk reduction in the future.
What broader importance does your research have for society?
My research directly addresses flood-related challenges that affect millions of people around the world each year, particularly during extreme rainfall seasons. Climate change is intensifying precipitation patterns, increasing rainfall variability, and contributing to short-duration, high-intensity storms that can severely impact communities and infrastructure. For example, the July 2025 Central Texas flooding caused devastating loss of life and damage. Such impacts highlight the urgent need for accurate flood early warning systems, proactive preparedness, resilient infrastructure, and effective implementation of federal and state flood management guidelines. My hope is to improve physics-based hydrodynamic models and strengthen their applications by integrating robust data-driven approaches, including AI and machine learning. Through this work, I aim to support better flood prediction, risk communication, and decision-making to help reduce future flood impacts.
What inspired you to pursue a career in Earth Science?
I would say my inspiration to continue research in Earth Science began during my master’s research on urban drainage system modeling. That work made me think more deeply about how communities suffer from different types of flooding, especially in urban and coastal areas, and how these impacts can be reduced. This motivation is also personal. Coming from a country where floods are frequently experienced, particularly during the monsoon season from July to August, I have seen how flood events affect lives, livelihoods, and infrastructure. These experiences motivated me to focus on flood-related research and to contribute to practical and sustainable solutions that can help reduce future flood impacts.
What are your short and/or long-term goals in your EPSP journey?
My short-term goals are to continue strengthening my research skills and contribute to meaningful research in stormwater management, urban flooding, and fluvial, pluvial, coastal, and compound flood prediction. I aim to further develop my expertise in physics-based hydrodynamic modeling, data-driven approaches, and climate-informed flood risk assessment while working in academia or a research-focused organization.
My long-term goal is to establish a collaborative research group that brings together local and international researchers, practitioners, stakeholders, and communities. Through this group, I hope to advance research that integrates physics-based modeling, AI and machine learning, high-quality environmental data, and stakeholder feedback to better understand and mitigate flood risks. Ultimately, my goal is to develop practical, sustainable, and socially relevant flood management solutions that can support resilient communities under changing climate conditions.
Given unlimited funding and access to resources, what is your dream project that you would pursue?
Given unlimited funding and access to resources, my dream project would be to develop an integrated flood research and prediction framework that connects experimental work, advanced modeling, and real-world applications. The project would focus on improving flood prediction systems for rainfall-driven, riverine, coastal, and compound flooding. A major goal would be to develop a robust real-time flood forecasting system that combines the strengths of physics-based hydrodynamic models, high-resolution topographic and meteorological data, and AI/machine learning approaches. Such a system would aim to provide accurate flood predictions with sufficient lead time, while supporting emergency response, infrastructure planning, and community-level decision-making. I would start this framework at a smaller watershed or community scale, where detailed monitoring, field observations, and model testing could be conducted. The system could then be scaled up to city, county, or regional levels. An important part of the project would be linking flood forecasts with practical communication tools so that communities, stakeholders, and emergency managers can better understand flood risks and take timely action.
What else do you do? Any hobbies or interests outside of work?
Outside of research, I enjoy playing badminton, watching historical series, and spending quality time with my family, especially when visiting outdoor places. I also enjoy outdoor activities such as hiking, cycling, and swimming whenever I have the time and opportunity.
Learn more about Husnain at: https://husnaintansar.wixsite.com/htansar